The Tale of Antaeus
by Jet556
Summary: By way of an out of body experience, the young Evabon Balor learns the tale of the Evabon hero Antaeus. During his out of body experience, the ThunderCats support Rotherham to be the new leader of the Guardians of the Tombs and the Hunter returns to continue his Evabon hunt.
1. Chapter 1

**Welcome, gang. This story will be sixteen chapters long. We learn the story of Antaeus, Balor is in danger of dying all that good stuff is here! Enjoy.**

**The Funeral of Autolycus**

Autolycus was dead. The leader of the Guardians of the Tombs was dead and they had to choose a new leader. Present to the funeral were the ThunderCats. They looked at the funeral pyre, Autolycus' body had been badly burned and crushed it was hard for them to not stare.

Tears were going down Asaji's face. Her father had joined her mother now she was the last of her family.

Terag and Sothap both looked over at Rotherham. They were both thinking the same thing. They both saw a young idealist, the perfect leader. Autolycus' death had caused everyone to realize his flaws and how the younger Rotherham would make a better leader. Rotherham went back for Autolycus' body not wanting anyone or anything to desecrate it. He was quite the potential candidate for leader.

Gard sat upon a rock. He looked up at the stars and started to think. Sotark was free but that's not what he was thinking about. He was thinking about him, Zuvowang and Dalv. Three grey-skinned evabon going up against the only evabon to be considered a monster was something. Zuvowang himself was eager for the challenge thus was pounding a dead tree and Dalv was busy meditating while he thought about what to do.

Then Gard's thoughts turned to Balor. His young relative was hurt, badly. He had been hit by the Hunter's hammer so brutally that he could die. He didn't know what he could do all he could do is hope. Hope that Balor would live.

Balor's unconscious form lied inside a hut. A blanket was over him, not covering his head. Kit and Snarf looked down at him. Both had worried looks in their eyes. While Kat starred at Autolycus' on his funeral pyre, Kit sat next to the unconscious Balor. She worried about him. He meant a lot to her, not just to Gard. Balor couldn't die, he just couldn't.

No one noticed as sparkling red light floated into the valley. It moved towards the hut that Balor was in. While Kit had her eyes closed in prayer for Balor's wellbeing, Snarf alone saw the light. When it moved towards Balor's unconscious body, a sparkling grey light emerged from Balor's chest. As the two lights suddenly shot through the air, Snarf let out a surprised sound. Kit opened her eyes and looked at Snarf.

"Quiet, Snarf!" Snarf's ears went down as he looked at the directions the lights had gone in. What were they? Where were they going?

The lights stopped in a great amphitheater. At the top row of seats, the two lights turned into the transparent forms of two evabon. The grey one turned into Balor. Upon arriving and changing spiritual form, Balor shook his head. What had just happened?

Balor turned his head to look at the red light as it turned into Procyon. Procyon looked down at Balor. The younger evabon swallowed in fright. "Enjoying your out of body experience?" Balor's jaw was trembling. "Don't worry, we've got eight hours ahead of us. You don't need to worry 'bout death 'til sunrise nears. After sunrise you won't be able to return to your body, hopefully this won't take that long." Balor smiled. He was trying not to worry. "But if we were to go through the entire history lesson it would take us ten hours so I'll have to leave some things out."

"What are you talking about?" Procyon pointed at some nearby cliffs. The cliffs were made almost entirely out of clay and from the clay life-sized figure emerged made in the images of evabon. There were eighteen of them. Fifteen of them were in the form of men and three of them were in the form of women. "What is this?"

"As I told you, a history lesson!" Procyon placed a hand on Balor's shoulder. The two suddenly were standing in the front row before the round stage. Balor turned to look at where they had been standing. What was going on here? Procyon snapped his fingers and suddenly the dark amphitheater was lit by torches! Balor looked up at the clay figures and he recognized one of them.

"That one looks like Gard!" Procyon nodded. The one that looked like Gard changed in color. The grey clay turned a dark brown and the outlines of clothing, silver in color appeared on the figure. Balor starred at the figure. "… Antaeus?" Procyon nodded.

"The same." Procyon then placed a hand on Balor and sat down on a stone bench. Balor sat next to him. "This is something you have to learn. Gard, my brother, the one whose bloodline you are descended from, is the reincarnation of Antaeus. In a way, this can be called your heritage. Not in the literal sense but the spiritual sense."

"Can't I just read about him?" Procyon shook his head.

"No, history is written by the winners." Balor raised an eyebrow. "Now, enough of this and on with the show."

"What about my body?"

"No need to worry 'less someone or something causes grievous injury to it before sunrise."

"Isn't that—-"

"Yes, now pay attention." Procyon pointed at the stage. He crossed his arms and rested his right leg on his left knee.

Far away, deep in a forest at a pond sat the Hunter. The Hunter starred at his reflection. At a time he had been Lib, a Nomis. He had not been the mighty warrior he was now. He had been a peasant, a farmer. He had never enjoyed his work and so when he decided to kill a nomis of nobility that he had given hospitability to. He killed the nomis while he slept, too easy for Lib's taste but easy enough. When he did, he took the armor and the hammer that belonged to the nomis he had killed. With this hammer Lib could live his dream of bringing glory to his race by killing all sentient beings that were not nomis, become a hero. Lib died and the Hunter was born, turning his eye to the most numerous race on the third earth he began his crusade by hunting the evabon!

The Hunter starred at his reflection to the eyes of those demons he was the monster! All non-nomis were monsters! He would destroy them all! He was the most virtuous of his perfect race! He would rid third earth of those stains on its surface. He was hero! The greatest of all of them!

The Hunter held up his hammer and looked at it. He had not slain Gard he would rectify that mistake. But that child! He had to know if he had killed the child! If the child still lived then he would crush the child's skull with his hammer. After that he would kill that old evabon that survived an encounter with him.

No prey escaped the Hunter. He would return to the valley and kill all there. He would stuff the grey skins and just skin the rest.


	2. Chapter 2

**Welcome back, gang. I mentioned Antaeus a few times in my previous stories so this is the time that I finally reveal Antaeus' story to my readers. For Antaeus I mentally cast Kenneth Branagh and for Amaterasu I cast Claire Bloom, they are just the people I think would fit the roles and since Gard is the reincarnation of Antaeus I consider it cheating to use the same actor for something like that in voice acting. Enjoy.**

**The Judgment of Antaeus**

Kit placed a hand on Balor's cheek. As she sat in this hut, ten feet away from the Valley of the Tombs, Kit started to feel saddened. Twice Balor had been hurt because of her.

The first time he tried to protect her from Thomeheb. Thomeheb had beaten Balor until he had been bruised and bleeding so much that Kit thought he had been killed.

Now the second time, Balor had pushed her out of the way of the hunter's hammer. Here he was barely alive but still Kit worried about Balor. What if Balor didn't wake up? What if he did die?

Kit leaned down and placed her head against Balor's chest. She heard his heart beating faintly. It might have been beating but it was so faint that Kit worried that… that it would stop beating that night.

Tears started to flow from her eyes. She sat up and then leaned over again and kissed Balor on the cheek. "Please... don't die."

"No need for tears, child." Kit turned around and saw the shaman woman from Balor's village. Kit pointed at her in recognizing.

"I remember you." The shaman woman nodded.

"My name is Amaterasu and I remember you as well, little girl." Amaterasu kneeled next to Kit. She placed a hand on Balor's forehead. "You worry too much about him. You have faith in your leader, you believed he survived when the others did not."

"How do you-"

"I have my ways of finding out these things." Amaterasu held out her left arm and wiped away the tears from Kit's face with the sleeve of her robe. "Why do you not have the same faith for Balor?"

"That's different." Amaterasu turned her head and looked down at Kit.

"How?" Kit stuttered. She didn't know what to say. "It is good that you have faith in your leader but you must have faith in others as well. Balor will live he like any other evabon does not die easily. We are not invincible however. There are only so much injuries that we can take until we succumb to our wounds. You have a right to worry about Balor but you need not worry now, he will live." Kit took Balor's hand and held it in hers. Amaterasu reassurance that Balor would live had made her feel better.

Balor touched his cheek. Unbelievable, he could feel even as a spirit. This was strange and it caused him to worry a bit.

Balor looked up at the stage. There stood Antaeus, or at least the figure that had been made in his image. Three others stood there. Evabon woman was what they looked like.

"Mistress of Birth, Mistress of Architecture, Mistress of Beauty what brings you here to a lowly warrior such as myself?"Antaeus starred at the women. "Why do you three leave the mountain across the rainbow bridge?" There was a diadem on the Mistress of Birth's head, an aegis was worn by the Mistress of Architecture and in the hands of the Mistress of Beauty was a mirror. Balor took note of each of these and knew how to identify them.

"We come for you to judge us." The Mistress of Birth placed a hand on Antaeus shoulder. "Which of us three is the most beautiful of the Celestials?"

"It shall be me of course." The Mistress of Beauty spoke with so much confidence.

"Choose me and I your wife shall bear the strongest sons and the most beautiful daughters." The Mistress of Birth still had her hand on Antaeus' shoulder. Antaeus then removed her hand.

"You have no real power like that." Anataeus starred into the Mistress of Birth's eyes. "The only reason you have your title is because of the number of children you gave birth to: sixteen, all of them by Sotark, the former bearer of many titles some now held by his sons. I will not choose you." The Mistress of Birth stepped back and the Mistress of Architecture stepped forward.

"Choose me and the walls of the city you shall come to build will be so powerful that your city will never fall." Antaeus shook his head.

"If I come to build a city then it must fall so it must either be rebuilt or the inhabitants must go on to build a new city." Antaeus pushed the Mistress of Architecture back. The Mistress of Beauty then stepped forward.

"The power of beauty is everywhere." The Mistress of Beauty walked right up to Antaeus. "In the plants, the rocks, the curse of death, the blessing of life. Beauty is the other half of violence and that is what a warrior needs. You will choose me." Antaeus shook his head.

"If I were to stop being a warrior I would become a shaman." Antaeus pushed the Mistress of Beauty back. "I do not need violence, I'm perfectly fine without war. I have chosen none of you, leave me to my vigil!" All three of the women glared in anger at Antaeus.

"Your judgment does not please us, for this insult you shall have to face our vengeance!" All three spoke in unison. Balor was frightened by this and his fright caused his body to shiver. He did not know why but there was something about their voices that got to him.

"You three are unarmed, you three never fought, I have nothing to fear of you three." Anateus' comment caused the three women to leave angrily. With their figures being made of clay, Procyon had decided to become artistic they crumbled into dust and blew away.

Gard looked up at the moon. He started to walk away from the valley as the other evabon and the ThunderCats discussed if Rotherham had what it took to be leader. While Gard walked away, he heard footsteps. He turned his head and looked down at Kat.

"Leave me alone, Kat." Gard turned his head and looked out at the wilderness. The Hunter had retreated into it. He would find the Hunter. "This isn't something for children."

"But I want to help!" The boy was practically begging. Gard wasn't sure if he heard guilt or not in Kat's voice but he didn't care. "I was the one who wanted to go into the tomb, he followed me just to keep an eye on me. Him and Kit followed to keep an eye on me. It's my fault that he got hurt."

"You're not coming, Kat." Grad still didn't turn to look at Kat. "Stay here where it's safe, go talk to Osric."

"But he's insane!"

"And harmless, now go!" Kat groaned as he walked away. Gard left the valley, not unnoticed. Zuvowang and Dalv both watched as he left.

Zuvowang knew what Gard was doing. He was going after the Hunter. It wasn't worth it. Revenge never was. Gard was going after the Hunter to kill him all because the Hunter had nearly killed Balor. Balor was alive there was no reason for Gard to get so vengeful.

Asaji looked at the records. There were three whole volumes about Sotark and she didn't like what she was reading. Sotark had many titles and all of them had the word 'master' in them: Master of the Sky, Master of Thunder, Master of Lightning, Master of Law, Master of Order, Master of Justice, Master of the Sea, Master of Earthquakes, Master of Mounts, Master of Fire, Master of Metalworking, Master of Stone Masonry, Master of the Art of Sculpture, Master of the Dead, Master of Riches and Master of Terror. He really was fond of the word 'master.'

According to the records, Sotark had been born centuries before Leir had been buried in the Valley of the Tombs and imprisoned before the valley had even received its name.

A decade before his imprisonment, Sotark had forced a city named Harapa into worshipping him. It was the only city that he forced into worshipping him. It is the only city that he hadn't plagued with suffering. Harapa had been a diverse city with races other than Evabon in living in it. The only race that did not submit were the Evabon Sotark's own race. Sotark killed every Evabon in the city. Sotark had ordered that the city's warriors go out and take prisoners from towns and villages. The female prisoners were to be sacrificed to him and the male prisoners were to be put into an arena, unarmed, to be torn apart by wild beasts.

One would have expected that Sotark's order would have been stopped after he had been imprisoned. It hadn't been. Harapa had become as terrible as Sotark himself, any good in it being in an impossibly small amount.

Sotark had left a mark on Third Earth. So had others, Evabon, Cats, Rats and a demon from the stars.


	3. Chapter 3

**Welcome back, gang. Not much to say this time but on with the show! Enjoy.**

**Diabolique**

Balor had begun to shiver. This told Kit that he was in no danger of dying. She still had a bit of doubt about what Amaterasu had said but she was happy to see that he would live. She stood up and looked at Amaterasu.

"I'm going to get another blanket!" She left the hut and with that Amaterasu vanished as she had the first time Kit had met her. Balor was alone, vulnerable.

Not that it mattered. He wasn't really there. As Balor starred at the stage in the amphitheater he couldn't help but feel the vulnerability that his body was in. He didn't know why but there was something dangerous, like lightning, back in the surrounding area of the Valley of the Tombs.

Upon the stage were new clay figures. Procyon had quickly created them, having forgotten of the other people, so quickly in fact that a few of them were missing bits and pieces.

Balor's eyes were on a woman. Blue skin, green eyes, red hair she kind of resembled Balor's own mother. She was beautiful, but of course one did consider their mother to be beautiful it was only natural, and this woman was beautiful not because of how she looked liked Balor's mother. Her name was Diabolique.

"Did no one survive the massacre?" One of the other evabon shook their head. "Not even my husband, Antaeus?"

"He was last seen on the bridge when it fell." Diabolique bit her finger at this information. "We know what lives down there, even if he was to survive the fall…" The other evabon trailed off. "We can't take much more of this! We've got to go into hiding. Somewhere the Hunter won't find us!" Balor's jaw dropped. The Hunter? It couldn't have been the same Hunter. What was going on? Was there some sort of a cycle? Was this Hunter the one who inspired the one who had injured him? Balor had no idea. He just shook his head as he watched the scene before him.

"We'll go into the wilderness." Diabolique started to walk away but turned back when one of them didn't follow. The one who had informed her of Antaeu's death. Balor knew that Antaeus couldn't have been dead it was too early for that. "Do you not come with us?"

"I'm not going to travel in the maws of death itself." The evabon clenched his fists and walked away from the group. "I'm going to the north, away from all of you fools!" The evabon was young and had red skin. Balor turned to look at Procyon.

"Who is that?" Procyon sighed and looked down.

"My great-grandfather Cuchulain." Balor looked at the evabon again. Was he really descended from that particular evabon? He seemed mean spirited! How could he have been descended from someone like that?


	4. Chapter 4

**Welcome back, gang. I'd like to state that on the ThunderCats Fanon Wiki I've created a page titled "The Evabon Saga." I came across it yesterday and the wiki is in its early stages so it's not much yet and it could use some help. Enjoy. **

**The Gathering of the Warriors**

With Kit and Amaterasu gone, Balor was alone. Unconscious and with his spirit currently in limbo, Balor could do nothing. He wasn't even aware of what was coming.

A creature entered the hut, a Komrev. A large, hairy, ape-like humanoid creature: a female. There were a few differences between the male and female komrevs. Males were taller, standing at eleven feet while females stood at ten feet. The males were colored dark brown and red eyed while the females were gray and with yellow eyes. They had four toed feet that were two feet in length and long arms that varied from only reaching the ground to twice the size of the entire body. They had a stone-like appearance and rock hard skin with reptilian eyes. They were covered in long hair, had three feet wide chests and walked with a shuffling gait.

As this was a female, this one was ten feet tall, gray in color and had yellow eyes. She seemed curious about the young evabon. Sniffing the child to see if he still lived, she found that he did but was confused of why he seemed dead. She poked Balor with a finger. He did not move. She then removed the blanket and started to sniff him again. She was sniffing a few bruises on his torso but stopped when she noticed his hands. She had never been this close to an evabon before, with any children running from her in fright. Evabon, cats, nomis all children ran from her in fright. Balor's hands and feet, like the hands and feet of all evabon, had only four digits. Four digits, just liked a Komrev.

She took Balor's hand and placed it in hers. How small it was in hers! Looking around, the female komrev picked up the unconscious Balor and carried him away.

This was strange feeling. Balor felt as if he was being carried away but still he was in the amphitheater unless his body was being moved. He shook his head and looked up at the stage. Upon walked Antaeus and an older evabon, yellow skinned with white hair and blind in the left eye.

"The village, it's been burned to the ground." Antaeus looked around. "Everyone's gone. Dead… The bodies are barely even recognizable." He then fell to his knees. "Oh, my Diabolqiue! She was with child! I have nothing left, Wendigo my old friend. Nothing."

"Listen to me, Antaeus." Wendigo placed a hand on Antaeus' shoulder. "We still live, your wife, your child, my son all of them might be gone but we still live!" Wendigo then turned his head as three more evabon and a tolac walked onto the stage. One of them was gray skinned a boy of ten. Wendigo's sad expression immediately brightened. "Bodhe! My son, you still live!" Wendigo embraced Bodhe and then looked over at the other two both red skinned and in their early twenties. "And the twins: Finlach and Gilcomgan!" Wendigo then turned to look at Antaeus as the tolac walked up to him. "We can go on!" Antaeus had begun to pat the tolac on his head. Balor was surprised by how much it resembled Calaban.

"Lulach, what are we to do?" The tolac didn't answer since tolacs like Snarf can't talk. "We might as well go into the wilderness… Yes, that's what we'll do!" The others all starred at Antaeus as he stroked Lulach's head. It was suicide to go into the wilderness! No on who entered their ever returned. The wilderness was death and chaos incarnate! Young Cuchulain had often said he'd never go into the wilderness and everyone agreed with him.

"The Hunter has gone into the wilderness!" Everyone turned to look at the twins. They were cursed to always speak in unison. The curse had been placed upon them when their father had stolen from a shaman thus resulting in the annoyance and confusion of the curse. No one was even going to ask who had said that there was no point. "He's pursuing a group of survivors that's not us obviously." Antaeus stood up and started to walk towards the twins. The twins? For some reason Balor was thinking of the Wilys, the only twins he knew. He was starting to think of one of them. He was thinking of Kit.

Balor wasn't sure about why he was thinking about Kit. Twice he had tried to protect her and twice he had been hurt because of her. The first time Balor had been beaten, bruised and bleeding all by a giant who was Gard's cousin. The second time he took a hit for her, that second time was this time! He didn't know why he tried to protect her he just knew that he liked her. Balor could talk to Kit he could talk to someone his age without being tongue-tied. She was the first person he had ever talked to without being tongue-tied, he had once been so nervous then he met her. He felt a strange feeling in his heart and it all started when she had kissed him on the cheek before they parted ways.

Balor's spirit then shot across the sky. When Procyon saw this he flew in pursuit! Balor wasn't going to get out of his history lesson, not that way!

Kit starred at where Balor had been. She clasped her hands together in joy. Balor must have regained consciousness. He must have left the hut to… Kit looked down at the ground. She saw tracks: four toed, two feet in length. Some beast must have carried away his unconscious form!

She started to leave the hut, following the tracks. She stopped. Where was Amaterasu? She must have vanished, like she had the first time Kit had met her. Why would she leave him like that? Kit could get answers from Amaterasu later, now she had to find Balor.

Kit followed the tracks. It wasn't that hard, they were so big that she was practically walking in them. She didn't know what could have left them. It must have been a ferocious monster. Kit then stopped in the tracks. She had thought the same thing about Gard maybe this wasn't a monster but some sort of protector. Whatever it was she had to find it, she had to find Balor.

Kit wished someone were with her. The rest of the ThunderCats were with the Evabon discussing who the next leader should be. There was a lot who were in favor of Rotherham it was obvious that he'd end up as Autolycus' successor. Gard, Zuvowang and Dalv were nowhere to be found and her brother? Kat was trying to convince the insane Osric that the skull of his late brother Yorick was not talking to him. So here she was, alone, trying to find whatever it was that had taken Balor.

Kit then heard something. She turned around to see Snarf. Kit smiled. She wasn't alone anymore. Snarf was with her.

Kit and Snarf followed the tracks. As they followed they started to hear something. Kit wasn't sure what it was. Hooting perhaps? An owl? A Mumm-Ra monkey? Kit remembered those things! She had been terrified of them, as had her brother. That anything like that could exist made her wonder if those had been the real ferocious monsters, not Gard.

The two finally came across the source of the sound and the tracks. The creature, whatever it was shaking Balor. It was trying to wake him up. Unafraid, Kit walked up to the creature. The creature, a female Komrev looked up from Balor and starred at Kit. It had never seen a cat so close before.

They were both so small. The Komrev watched as Kit sat down next to Balor next to a spruce tree. This female Komrev was a gentle being and she knew the kitten meant no harm to the evabon child.

No matter how gentle she was, Kit still looked frightened. She wasn't sure why. It could have been the eyes. Reptile eyes on a mammal's body, it just didn't seem right or possible.

The Komrev then stood up to her full height and walked over to a fruit tree. With her long arms the Komrev started to pick the fruit in the tree. Kit kept an eye on her for a while but finally she kneeled next to Balor. Looking down at his face, Kit could tell he was still breathing but he still hadn't regained consciousness. Why? She placed a hand on his cheek while Snarf started to paw at his shoulder. Snarf was trying to wake up Balor while Kit was just waiting for him to wake up.

Then something caught Snarf's eye.

A light grey sparkling light shot down and entered Balor's chest.

Slowly, Balor's eyes opened. "Kit?" Kit smiled as Balor sat up. She had been worried for a moment. She had heard of something called 'living death' and she was beginning to think that… Kit stopped thinking about that. Balor was not in any danger of dying or being in a state of living death. She watched as Balor stood up, looking around. "Where are we?" The Komrev then came back with fruit. "What is that?" The Komrev then pushed a fruit into Balor's mouth. Instantly, Balor spat out the fruit.

"How's it taste?" Balor turned to look at Kit. The Komrev had gently handed her a fruit instead of ramming it into her mouth like she had with Balor.

"Sour, very sour!" Balor and Kit both watched as the Komrev started to eat the rest of the fruit herself. Balor then shook his head and looked at Kit. "How did we get out here?"

"I'm not sure of how to tell you this but she" Kit pointed at the Komrev "must have found you in the hut you were in and she must have taken you from the hut." Balor starred in disbelief.

"What? Why? And why didn't you stop her?" Kit was going to reply but didn't. She felt like he was blaming her. Seeing the hurt look on her face, Balor's eyes widened and he walked towards her. "Kit, I didn't mean for it to sound like that. I just woke up from a weird dream and I feel like I've been in a fog." Kit looked at Balor. What kind of a dream did he have?

"It was no dream!" Balor and Kit turned around to see Procyon behind them. "You're not getting out of your history lesson that easy, Balor." Procyon held his hand out, in which was a lantern, and a light grey sparkling light came out of Balor's chest. Balor fell to the ground, once again unconscious. "This is something you have to learn! I know it doesn't seem fair but you are to remain in there so you don't end up going back to your body because you think of someone!" Kit kneeled next to Balor's fallen form. She looked over at Procyon with worried eyes. Inside the lantern was the light, Balor's spirit she guessed "This is necessary, young Thunderan. Do not worry, he shall be up and walking again before sunrise. That is how an out-of-body experience works, you must return to your body before sunrise or sunset, depending on when your spirit leaves your body, so you might rejoin the living. Oh, and I'd protect that husk of his, should it be destroyed then he'll never return." Procyon then vanished. Kit starred in wonder. What was this history lesson that Procyon had been talking about?

Kit then looked up as the Komrev picked up Balor's body and started to carry it away. Kit and Snarf followed. They didn't know where she was taking Balor but Kit knew that she had to protect him. She only wondered if the Komrev was to be trusted. Kit had never seen a Komrev before she only knew what it was from the description. Some people had described them as being ferocious predators and some had described them as being shy and peaceful. Kit wasn't sure which was to be believed. At the moment this Komrev seemed liked it could have been peaceful but with her… friends unconscious she wasn't going to take risks.

Out of some underbrush stepped the hunter. A smile on his skull-like face he starred at the tracks left by the Komrev. None had noticed his presence. He would follow them kill them all. Have the evabon stuffed and mounted because gray skins were so rare, the cat too because if he did not prove that he had killed cats with tails then no one would take his word with many of the well known cats being ones without tails there was doubt among the Nomis of cats with tails. That strange pet would be stuffed and mounted too. While the Hunter did plan to eradicate every other sentient race so that Third Earth would belong only to the Nomis, he still had to make a living so he would see that pets stuffed and mounted body in a great Nomis city so he could get money to fill his belly and get his armor and hammer repaired. He would take the Komrev's head simply because as a hobby he collected Komrev heads. He had quite the collection on his estate. Stealthily, the Hunter followed, after all what was the Hunter without his prey?

Gard knelt down next to a footprint. It was the Hunter's footprint alright the armor was weighing causing his footsteps to be deeper than they should be.

"Gard, will you listen to us?" Gard didn't even turn to look at Zuvowang. "I'm as boisterous a bruiser as the next but listen to reason! Vengeance isn't worth it! Let us go back to the valley and I'll tell the story of how I single handedly brought down a rampaging beast that had killed my sister!" There was the distinctive sound of palm hitting forehead.

"Why take vengeance upon a non-sentient being?" Gard didn't even turn to look at Dalv, the one responsible for the sound of palm hitting forehead.

"Ah, but you see dear comrade Dalv that the beast was a danger to the whole society!" Gard then turned to face Zuvowang and Dalv.

"And is the Hunter not a danger to society?" They both starred at him. "Every person to have used the moniker of 'the Hunter' has been a danger to society. This Hunter isn't a danger to just our race but to every sentient race that is not his own. We've seen this before haven't we? A kill happy maniac that is a danger to everyone? That believes his or her race to be superior to all of the rest? Mark my words, I will kill the Hunter to protect Balor who is of my very bloodline just not so I won't be alone again but so he won't die before he reaches adulthood. That is one of the worst deaths that can befall someone." Gard turned around and continued I search of the Hunter. Zuvowang and Dalv both starred at each other, one of them a boisterous bruiser the other one not much of a fighter but would fight if he had to. Zuvowang shook his head and Dalv let out an annoyed sigh. They followed Gard, with intentions to convince him to come back to the Valley of the Tombs.


	5. Chapter 5

**Welcome back, gang. I might be going a bit far with creating a bestiary but the way I see it we've only seen a bit of Third Earth in the show thus a little bit of OCs and fan-created creatures wouldn't hurt at all. Enjoy.**

**The Siege of Harapa**

Kit continued to follow the Komrev. They soon came to a cave, a lot like the one Thomeheb had taken Kit to: a mushroom cave lite by fireflies and glowworms. The cave was filled with other Komrev and when they first entered the cave, a large male charged towards the female, whom Kit had named Gruadh, growling with an unnaturally large amount of aggression. Most of that aggression was towards Kit and the unconscious Balor. Kit noticed the broken nose, silver beard and eyes white from injury that gave this Komrev an intimidating appearance. Snarf hissed as soon as this growling beast appeared.

Gruadh simply placed Balor on the ground next to Kit and lashed out with her long arms, hitting the male whom Kit would later name Crinan. Within a few seconds, Crinan retreated and hid behind a stalagmite and a stalactite that ended up forming into a pillar.

Gruadh picked up Balor and started to walk deeper into the cave. Kit followed, as did Snarf, but stopped when she heard more of Crinan's growling. She turned around to see Crinan, still behind the pillar, growling at her and shaking a hairy fist angrily.

Kit ran to catch up to Gruadh. As she ran she suddenly felt something tug on her tail! She stopped and saw a few of the young pulling her tail. There were all males and had looks of enjoyment on their faces as they pulled Kit's tail.

It hurt! She cried out and soon enough Gruadh came back. Holding Balor in one arm, she shooed away the youngsters that had been tormenting Kit with her free arm. When they started to follow, Gruadh growled at them and they soon stopped following.

As Kit walked next to Gruadh she heard the flapping of wings. She looked up and saw that there were more than just fireflies, glowworms and Komrev in this cave.

Gard had talked about these things before. When the ThunderCats had met Gard when he was in exile, the old evabon had spoken of creatures called Olitiau. Gard had described them accurately: bat-like with black fur, monkey-like faces, clawed feet and a fifteen-foot wingspan. These winged humanoids were five feet tall and had eerie feminine features. Gard had spoken about how Olitiau colonies were ruled by females with males being solitary because they had a tendency to kill young just so they could mate with the females and thus males were driven out as soon as they could fly. So here Kit was looking up at the demonic female Olitiau, all of them thin and bony just like how Gard had described them. There were pale-skinned with indigo eyes, Gard's description of these demons was startling accurate. Kit could have only wondered how he could have ended up encountering such creatures. Besides a description of their physical appearance, Gard had stated that Olitiau would swoop down on their victims and attack several times, lived in either caves or extinct volcanoes and would snatch children. Gard had expressed great fear for others when he stated that Olitiau were active both during the day and at night, how ever most of this fear was for his tolac Calaban and not necessarily for the ThunderCats or any one else.

While Kit looked up at the Olitiau a feeling of terror had come over her. One of them looked down at her with ravenous eyes and Kit was frozen by the terror she was in.

Suddenly, a something touched her shoulder. Kit jumped in fright and turned around to see Gruadh. Gruadh led Kit away from that part of the cave, knowing that the Olitiau were always a danger Gruadh brought Kit and the unconscious Balor to a part of the cave where the Olitiau would not be able to reach them.

Gruadh placed Kit and Snarf on her back with Balor still in one arm she climbed down a crevice. Once at the bottom of the crevice Kit jumped off of Gruadh's back and found herself standing in ancient dust. For one of Gard's or Panthro's height it would have only been up to their ankles but for the smaller Kit it was higher causing some difficulty for her to move.

Gruadh placed Balor down gently and started to cover him in dust until the only thing visible was his head. Snarf almost immediately lied down on Balor's chest.

Kit looked up and at the top of the crevice was Crinan, starring down at them.

Crinan's eyes were on the unconscious Balor. Twice he had been caught in a trap: once a trap made by evabon, and once a trap made by cats. These experiences had caused him to believe that all evabon and cats were his enemies and were it not for his mate keeping an eye on both of the children, Crinan would have killed them.

Crinan soon walked away, leaving the crevice and Kit sat next to Balor. Kit had begun to worry. The Hunter was out there he could have been anywhere! And now there was Crinan to worry about and the Olitiau too! If Gruadh were to leave, Crinan could climb down and get her and Balor. What if the Olitiau tried to come down and get them?

Kit placed a hand on Balor's shoulder and sighed. This was a dangerous place they had been brought to. Now she only wondered how long it would take for Balor's spirit to return.

Balor starred at the stage. Antaeus, Wendigo, Bodhe, the Twins and Lulach both starred out and Balor listened to know about what was going on.

"Harapa, the Hunter has often come here so I'm told!" Wendigo placed a hand on Antaeus' shoulder. "It is good we did not go into the wilderness! It is better that we lay siege to the city that worships Sotark believing him to be a god, something divine!"

"I'd still prefer to have gone into the wilderness after the Hunter! Antaeus removed Wendigo's hand from his shoulder.

"Antaeus, it would have been suicide to do such a thing!" Bodhe walked up to Antaeus. Antaeus didn't even turn to look at him. "Anyone who goes into there never returns. The Hunter is probably dead and we must destroy the city that has been a threat to Third Earth for generations."

"But still I want revenge for my Diabolique!" Antaeus' hands closed into fists and he hunched over.

"You're angry, I understand that so why don't you take it out on the Sotark cult?" Antaeus turned and looked at Bodhe.

"Yes, the Hunter must have been a member of that cult by destroying the cult I'll get my revenge." Antaeus stood straight and turned around. "Alert the others, today Harapa goes under siege!" Balor then turned to look at Procyon.

"Why is this siege so great?" Procyon turned his head to look at the boy with a raised eyebrow. "Surely, there were others! Is this just because Harapa worshipped Sotark?"

"Harapa still worships Sotark and it is where his hammer is!" Procyon starred down at Balor. This information trembled and looked down.

"What does this cult do?"

"They sacrifice women and place men in arena to be torn apart by wild beasts." Procyon then grabbed Balor by the hair and lifted his head so he would look at the stage. "That is where Gard, Zuvowang and Dalv must go. If they destroy the hammer then Sotark won't be more powerful than he already is!" Procyon let go of Balor's hair. Balor turned his head to look at Procyon.

"This isn't just a history lesson is it?" Procyon nodded. "Then why not just tell them?" Procyon laughed at Balor's question.

"If I want to do something the easy way, I'll do that when I'm bored." Procyon continued to laugh. "But this way is so much more fun and you are being educated!" Balor sighed and looked back at the stage. He only wondered where the Hunter of his era was now.

The Hunter starred at the entrance of the cave. That Komrev had taken those two kids in there. Where there was one, there was usually a whole bunch of Komrev. That was good he could use the exercise. The Hunter walked up to the cave's entrance and stood out of view of the entrance. He banged his hammer on the ground. The sound attracted the interest of a young komrev. When the young kmorev popped its head out… it died. The Hunter brought down his hammer and the Hunter made his first kill of the night. Not one that he was excited about. It was too easy for his tastes, not glorious at all. The kills to come later however, those would be most glorious!

"Don't move!" The Hunter's eyes widened. That was Gard's voice. The Hunter turned around and saw Gard and that green-eyed grey skin both pointing their guns at him. "Alright, monster, you're coming with us. The evabon in the Valley of the Tombs with choose your punishment and I'm personally hoping that your crimes cost you your right hand."

"Too much of a coward to kill me yourself?" The Hunter laughed at Gard's irritated expression. "Did that child shudder in pain before he died?" Gard tried to grab his claymore until Zuvowang grabbed Gard's arm, attempting to restrain him from drawing the sword, only barely succeeding. "Or did my blow kill him immediately?"

"He's not dead." Gard glared with eyes that seemed to look right into the soul. It was a good thing the Hunter had never had a soul to begin with. "But you're gonna wish you were when I'm done with you!" The Hunter raised a hand.

"Ah, ah, ah, not so fast!" There was a smug look on the Hunter's face. For some reason it caused Gard to think of a snake. "Do you know where he is?"

"Of course, he's in a hut not fat from the Valley of the Tombs." The Hunter laughed at Gard's answer.

"You fool!" The Hunter's comment caused Gard to once again reach for his sword. This time he was restrained by both Zuvowang and Dalv! "A komrev has his him, the reason I'm here is only because my prey is being stolen by another predator and I can't have that." Gard was not convinced.

"We won't go in with you but should you die and we do find an unconscious Balor in there being looked after by a komrev after we go in to find your body then we'll give you an honorable burial." Zuvowang's comment caused Gard and Dalv to stare at their companion.

"I'm not agreeing to that!" Gard drew his sword and pointed it at the Hunter. "You're coming with us! Now!" The Hunter laughed. This was hardly threatening. "Don't laugh at me. You're outnumbered now just come with us and I won't end up killing you."

"Gard, come on." Dalv kept his gun on the Hunter. "Let's just take him back, push him in a hole and leave him there so he can be put on trial." Gard sighed and pointed his sword at the Hunter, the blade only two inches away from the Hunter's throat. The Hunter didn't fight back he just left the cave entrance with Gard, Zuvowang and Dalv. There was a time and a place for fighting and now wasn't it. Those four could wait. Now, he was going to have fun. An entire valley full of prey for him to hunt, he would kill them and he could kill everything in the cave later.

Back in the Valley of the Tombs, all were gathered. Evabon, the ThunderCats, the choice of Autolycus' successor was something of importance to all. There were three such evabon who seemed to be worthy of the title of leader. One of them of course was Rotherham. The other two were Thorfin, who had originally come from the far north and the other was Ketill, one who looked most familiar.

Rotherham and Ketill both stood in the center speaking with one another. Both were trying to convince the other as to why the other should become leader and why they themselves should not. Thorfin was sitting in the far corner with no intentions of ever jumping in to say why he or one of the others should be leader.

Ketill was twenty years old, grey-skinned, black haired, blue eyed. None of the evabon seemed to say anything of the resemblance but the ThunderCats could not help but notice. It was Tygra who noticed it most of all.

"Another descendant of Gard?" Tygra's question caused Cheetara to lean closer to Tygra to whisper to him.

"Do you think Balor could be his brother?" Ruari just didn't resemble Gard but there was a slight resemblance to Balor as well. Cheetara's question was a good one. This couldn't have been coincidence.

"You are descended from Antaeus and Wendigo on your mother's side, you should lead!" Tygra and Cheetara both starred at Rotherham. Antaeus and Wendigo?

"Aye, from the union of Wendigo's son Bodhe and Antaeus' daughter Aisla came the family that my mother is descended from but one's ancestry should not determine if they are to become leader." Ruari then placed a hand on his forehead. "I have also suspected that my father is descended from Gard and thus so am I and my little brother Balor who can not still be alive with the Scourge of Mumm-Ra ravaging my home village." Tygra, Cheetara, Lion-O, Panthro and Pumyra all looked at one another. It seemed that even Ruari believed he might be descended from Gard. Just not that but he was Balor's elder brother and believed his younger brother to be dead. "But still my status as a descendant of those heroes does not mean I should lead! I will not lead and it does not seem like our friend Thorfin has any interest in leading. You are only of we three who should lead. Not Thorfin, not I, you!" Rotherham looked around. All eyes were on him.

"I must think about this, give me an hour." Ruari nodded and Rotherham walked away. The rest of the eavbon dispersed but the ThunderCats immediately followed Ruari. Lion-O tapped Ruari on the shoulder, causing the evabon to turn and look at.

"Your brother is named Balor?" Ruari nodded at Lion-O's question.

"Yes, but it does not matter Balor is a common name among my race."

"Would he be eight years old right now?" Tygra's question caused a curious look to appear on Ruari's face.

"My blood brother lives? You've met him?" Tygra nodded. Panthro however did not understand something.

"How can you not know? He's been here since this afternoon?"

"I guard one of the tombs below all day" Panthro nodded in understanding. "I wouldn't have known." A smile started to appear on Ruari's face. "My brother is alive… where is he now?" Cheetara looked down.

"The Hunter hit him with his hammer." The smile on Ruari's face vanished. "He's alive but we don't know where the Hunter is."

"Here!" Everyone turned to see Gard, Zuvowang and Dalv with the Hunter as their prisoner. Gard was the one who had spoken and when he and Ruari's eyes met they knew who each other were. The resemblance was so strong that Ruari resembled a young Gard. They didn't say anything to each other they merely nodded at one another, both acknowledging the other as a blood relative. Then Zuvowang held up the Hunter's hammer and waved it around. A grin appeared on Panthro's face as he thought back to when he first met Zuvowang.

"Now what are you going to do with that?" Zuvowang nodded.

"I don't know, build a house make a sword, nothing violent." Panthro and Zuvowang both laughed.

The Hunter might not have been grinning on the outside but he was on the inside. He didn't need a hammer to kill someone. He could do just well with his bare hands!


	6. Chapter 6

**Welcome back, gang. Trying to give some twists in the plot in this chapter Enjoy.**

**The Adventure of Balor**

Kat sat next to Osric. He had since given up trying to convince him hat Yorick's skull wasn't talking to him. There was simply not point. Osric was insane and there was no changing that. Kat sighed and looked down at the table he was sitting at.

"Yes, Yorick, I know!" Kat turned his head to look at Osric. "Harapa was what caused us to lose our heads." Osric couldn't have been aware of his own insanity. Could he? "That evil city filled with Sotark worshippers! Thank goodness we escaped!" Sotark if these were some of Osric's mad imaginings. Kat stood up and started to walk away he Osric flew into a fit. "No!" Kat turned around to look at Osric. "They're coming for me! Thirty-years but they've finally found me! Harapa's Olitiau have come for us, Yorick! They've come for us!" Kat shook his head and left Osric. These were just more of his mad imaginings.

As Kit sat next to Balor she heard something coming from behind them. Gruadh heard it too and when she heard it she started to growl. Seven Olitiau walked into sight, they must have climbed down the crevice. One of them pointed at Kit and Balor.

"Sumdetso tcsudvil Thunderan cunaeprdto otdrpeanuc Evabon surat Sotark!" Kit didn't know what the Olitiau had said but it couldn't have been good. Gruadh charged at the Olitiau but here efforts were pointless. The Olitiau had taken Kit and Balor anyway. Two Olitiau had taken the children while the other five fought Gruadh. Snarf watched the whole thing from behind a rock in terror. There was nothing he could he do, he'd either get hurt or get in the way… or both!

Procyon's head turned. There was something wrong. While Balor watched the fight on the stage, Procyon's eyes glowed as he looked out of limbo and saw what was happening. Balor's unconscious form was being carried away by an Olitiau. Even when Procyon was young those things had been trouble. He breathed and Balor looked up at him.

"I think it's time for a short break." Procyon's statement caused a confused look from Balor.

"What? Why?" Procyon placed a hand on Balor's head.

"You'll see."

Once again Balor returned to his body. When he opened his eyes, he wished he hadn't. Around his arms were the clawed feet of a flying Olitiau and here he was hanging from its claws who knows how far from the ground. Curious, Balor looked down and then immediately he looked forward in fright. He was really high up. He guessed fifty feet. If he were to fall he'd surely die! Balor breathed slowly, he was trying to calm himself but it wasn't working. This high up there was nothing he could do but close his eyes.

What came next was a shock. The Olitiau had let go of Balor causing him to fall onto a cliff. When he opened his eyes he saw Kit was with him. But where was Snarf? And the Komrev? Had the Olitiau eaten Snarf? Had they killed the Komrev?

"Procyon, why'd you have to do this to me?" Kit looked at Balor. He was back but for how long? "You had to give me a break at a moment like this? Why not during a time when I'm not in danger of being sucked dry of my blood by these demons?"

"Bad timing?" Balor looked at Kit and nodded. Kit looked down the side of the cliff they were on. There was no way down that would be safe for either of them. She then turned to look at Balor as he walked towards the two Olitiau that had brought them to the cliff.

"You don't scare me!" The two Olitiau looked down at the young evabon. They were not convinced. "I've seen things that make you look like puppets!"

"Be silent!" Kit gasped in shock while Balor's eyes widened. Olitiau spoke? Kit had heard them speak some kind of strange language but she didn't think they could speak like her or anyone else she knew. Balor backed away. He didn't have anything to say. What could he say? He turned his head and looked up. There he spied a ledge that was just close enough for him to jump to. Within a heartbeat he did jump on to the ledge. Both of the Olitiau flew at him but he ended up dodging them by jumping to another ledge. Balor looked back at the ledge as he heard his attackers hit the side of the cliff.

"Those wings can't be too good since they're also your arms." Balor's taunt caused the Olitiau to once again fly at him. Once again he jumped to another ledge but this time one of those demons claws got hold of his right shoulder.

Seeing this, Kit grabbed a large rock and without a little bit of difficulty threw it at the demon. Hitting the Olitiau in the head, the impact of the rock caused the demon to let go of Balor.

Instead of falling to his death, Balor fell on a ledge below him. He looked up at Kit and gave her a smile letting her know he was fine.

"What are you incompetent beatsts doing?" Everyone turned to look at a masked person. It was impossible to tell what the person's species was, or even their gender. "For the first time in two millennia, Sotark is free and now he demands for people to be sent to Harapa!" The two demons looked down at the masked person angrily. Their race was nothing more but things used to deliver future sacrifices to great Sotark. Because of their size, all they could bring were children. They wanted to become Sotark's elite and one day they would become that and replace the race that currently served as Sotarks' warriors, that day would come and soon. Stubbornly, the Olitiau brought down Balor and Kit before a statue of Sotark that had been carved right out of the side of a mountain.

"Talk about an ego!" Balor looked up at the statue. It had to be three times taller than Sotark who was already very tall. The very height of the statue caused the young gray skin to feel small, insignificant powerless. He was starting to tremble, Kit put a hand on his shoulder.

"It's going to be okay." Balor didn't say anything. He wasn't sure about how things were going to turn out. The masked person starred for a few seconds and then looked at the statue.

"O Great Sotark, bless us with your presence and look upon those who will die in the arena and upon the altar!" Nothing happened. The masked person looked around. No apparition. "Appear to us, King of Third Earth!"

"It's just a statue, nothing more nothing less." Kit smiled at Balor's comment. He was definitely related to Gard. "You might as well worship a pile of mud." The masked person walked towards Balor and starred down at him. The person looked over at a cat that had a blank look on his face.

"My sword!" The person then looked back down at Balor. "And bring him one too, one with a blade that is no longer sharp." The cat walked away, as if he were in a trance. Kit grabbed Balor by the arm causing him to look in surprise at her.

"Are you crazy?" The concern in her voice was the only thing he heard. He couldn't understand why she should worry. He hadn't died yet. What was to worry about? He held one of her hands and smiled.

"Trust me." The cat returned and handed the masked person, the person wearing the featureless mask with nothing but eye holes, a sword that was sharpened and just the right size. The cat then handed Balor a sword whose blade had not been sharpened for what looked like a long while and that was also so big that Balor could barely lift it. The masked person laughed and starred at the cat.

"It's a good thing you're in a state of living death or otherwise you wouldn't be so obedient." The cat didn't say anything. "A bit of work on the speech centers of the brain and you're harmless." The masked person then turned to Balor and attacked. Clumsily, Balor blocked the blow with his sword. The blow despite being blocked caused Balor to fall down. The masked person turned to the statue of Sotark with arms raised. "Behold, Almighty Sotark, the evabon of today have grown soft. They are not the battle-hardened warriors you are they are not a thre-" The person gasped in pain as he felt the blade of Balor's sword cut his skin. The masked person fell to his knees and to his shock the eyes of the statue started to glow.

"You can't even defeat a child?" Sotark's voice came from the statue. While the masked person trembled in fear, Balor and Kit backed away as the Olitiau starred intently at the masked person's wound. "Feast my demons, enjoy his blood!" The Olitiau flew at the masked man while Balor and Kit ran away from the scene before them. Running down some steps Balor stopped and looked out into the distance. He could see the Valley of the Tombs it wasn't that far. As the two ran far from the place where Sotark's statue had been, Balor dropped the sword he had been given. He could barely even lift it and it was slowing him down.

The two came to a river and Balor began to look at his shoulder. It wasn't bleeding but there were some scratch marks on it.

"How's it feel?" Balor looked at Kit. He didn't know what to say. Should he just lie and say it was fine or tell the truth and say it hurt a bit?

"It doesn't matter." Kit placed her hand on Balor's shoulder. He tried not to wince but he did. Kit glared with a look that said she was not convinced.

"What was that?" Balor swallowed. He turned his head and looked at the river. It was wide, deep and strong, they'd have to find a crossing. "You know Gard would have been able to pull of the not feeling pain thing but I don't think you can."

"I can!" Balor looked at Kit. "I'm related to Gard, I can be just like him!"

"Balor, you can't." Kit shook her head. "You shouldn't." She removed her hand from Balor's shoulder. The scratch marks weren't bleeding there probably wouldn't ben any scars. "You're just a kid, like me and my brother."

"Kit, there is just to much expected of me!" Balor placed his hands on his head and looked down into the water. "My entire village, except for Gard or Amaterasu, they expect me to become a great gatekeeper, hero, athlete or protector." He fell to his knees and closed his eyes. "I thought that with Thomeheb gone everything would go back to normal in my village but it didn't. Everyone that's not Gard or Amaterasu, they aren't treating me like I'm me, they treat me like I'm someone else." Tears started to flow from Balor's closed eyes. "If my older brother Ruari was still alive all this pressure would have been him and he would have been able to handle it but I can't handle it." Kit kneeled next to Balor and put an arm around him and a hand on his shoulder. "It's just not fair, I'm just a kid!"

"Everything's going to be okay!" Balor shook his head. "It will!"

"The only home I know isn't treating me all that good." Balor sighed a sad sigh. "I can't see anything being okay." Kit looked into the water for a few moments. She didn't know what to say.

"How did your brother die?"

"I don't want to talk about it, it's all my fault and too... just… messy." Kit didn't understand. Her father had died in a tornado. How could Balor's brother have died? "I really don't know what the point was of sewing his head back on before cremation." Balor had mumbled this last but still Kit heard it. She didn't make any noise: she didn't say anything, she didn't gasp, nothing.

A familiar sound came to their ears. They looked across the river and saw Snarf on Gruadh's back.

"Are you going to jump across?" Balor shook his head at Kit's question.

"It's too far and it's too dangerous to swim across." The tears had stopped flowing. "Let's go find a crossing." They eventually did find a crossing but while Kit walked across it, Balor stayed put. There was something not right here, something dangerous. Kit was a cautious person didn't she know there was something dangerous here? "K-Kit… d-don't c-cross." Balor's stutter caused Kit to look at him strangely. She wasn't sure if he was being too careful or if he just wanted to go further down.

"What are you so worried about?" Balor didn't say anything. He wasn't sure himself why he thought there was something dangerous. Was there something in the river… on the other side maybe… in the sky? He just didn't know. Kit walked over to Balor and took his hand. She tried to walk across with him but he stubbornly refused to budge. "What's the matter?"

"I don't know." Filled with uncertainty, Balor placed a hand on his forehead. "The last time I got a feeling was right before my brother was killed by…"

"Yes?" Balor didn't know what to say. He wasn't exactly sure what it was that got his brother.

"I don't know what is was." Balor thought back to what he had seen. "It looked like a tolac with dull eyes, eyes that you couldn't see your reflection in."

"What?"

"It was that close before I ran away, its eyes weren't like Calaban's or Andvari's." Balor looked over at Snarf. "Calaban and Andvari had eyes like Snarf but this thing wasn't a tolac."

"What else do you remember?"

"When I came back with help and found Ruari's body the tolac's tracks… they turned into evabon tracks." Balor shook his head. "It's probably nothing, just me being scared for nothing." Balor walked across with Kit but still that feeling of danger didn't leave him. He didn't know why it was the same one from when Ruari died but for some reason the feeling was exactly the same. Why was that? When he reached the other side, Balor looked around. There was no sign of danger but still he couldn't shake that feeling that there was danger.

"Sotark didn't recognize us." Kit's comment caused Balor to stop looking around and to instead look at her.

"I think he might have recognized us." Balor started to turn his head again but stopped. He just kept his eyes on Kit. There wasn't anything dangerous. He was just being scared for no reason. "I think he just doesn't care who we are." Suddenly Snarf jumped down onto Balor causing the evabon boy to fall down. He had not expected it. He couldn't believe how heavy Snarf was. "You know Snarf you gotta lose some weight!" Snarf got off Balor and who should appear but Procyon, once again with that lantern.

"Break's over." Procyon held out the lantern and once again that shining grey light shot out of Balor's chest and Procyon vanished. Once again Balor was unconscious. Once again he was vulnerable. Gruadh picked up Balor's unconscious form and carried him away with Kit and Snarf following.


	7. Chapter 7

**Welcome back, gang. Unfortunately, this chapter is shorter than the others and only focuses on Balor's history lesson. Enjoy. **

**The Death of Finlach**

Balor starred at the stage. He didn't want to be back here, in limbo. Despite that feeling of danger he had been happy. He had been happy to be where he belonged not in some amphitheater in limbo.

"When will this be over?" Procyon starred at Balor. What the boy going on about? "I'm not happy learning about Antaeus like this. It would make more sense to learn about him from Hard, he is the reincarnation of Antaeus after all!"

"It will be over when I say it's over." Procyon turned his head back to look at the stage. "You will learn this way, and you will remember it!" Procyon starred at the clay figures on the stage. Although he had died and since ascended to the floating mountain across the rainbow bridge as a celestial and the guardian of the bridge, he had plans. He had plans for young Balor. While those of his village tried to force him to become like Gard, Procyon had his own plans for Balor.

Upon the stage one of the twins, Finlach stood walking alone on a battlefield. Soon enough a masked person appeared. The mask had a hooded appearance and was white. Finlach starred at the person in curiousness. He was armed with a spear and a sword, on his left arm was a shield.

"What are you?" Finlach starred at the masked figure. There was something familiar about this person.

"A person of flesh and blood, just as you!" The masked person's voice sounded strange. Expressionless and hypnotized! "They call me the Hunter."

"There is no name more hateful to my ears." Finlach held up his own spear in challenge. "Lay on then, Hunter, and cursed be him that first cries 'Hold! Enough!'"

Without a response, the Hunter threw his spear at Finlach who then dodged the spear. Strangely, the spear returned to its owner after hitting the ground.

"I thank you, master." The words the Hunter spoke shocked Finlach.

"Master?" Finlach starred in shock at the masked being before him. "You are a slave! Tell me who your master is, Hunter, and me and my friends shall free you!"

"Death is a release, not a punishment." The Hunter's voice made it clear to Finlach of what his master had done to him.

Finlach threw his spear. It would have struck flesh had the Hunter not quickly blocked it with his shield. The spear broke and Finlach drew his sword. With a mighty yell, he charged at the enslaved Hunter. His antagonist merely threw aside his shield and leapt at Finlach with his spear.

The blade of the spear met Finlach's neck. At this sight, Balor's mouth fell open. He had seen death before but not like that!

Finlach's sword had hit the Hunter's side. The wound was not fatal but still it bled.

While Finlach's black blood came from his death wound, he starred in shock at the blood on his sword.

"No!" Grabbing the mask from the Hunter's head Finlach's eyes widened in horror as he looked upon an evabon, black as obsidian. "Evanon hunting Evabon?" Antaeus, Wendigo and the others came onto the scene and Gilcomgan starred at his dying brother, fell to his knees and began to weep. "The Hunter is one of us." The Hunter let go of his spear and Finlach fell. He turned to look at the party before him.

"My master sends you a message!" Antaeus raised an eyebrow. The shocked look on his face only became more shocked when the word 'master' was said.

"Your master?" Antaeus could barely speak. The shock he was in was so great that he could barely even stand. "Who is your master?"

"Arrs, High Priest of Sotark." The General and King of Harapa. Of course the Hunter's master would be the High priest of Sotark's cult. "He says that if you bow down you may join Sotark's might." The shock left Antaeus. His strength returned to him and he stepped forward.

"Tell your master that we will not bow down to one who worships the King of Monsters." Antaeus starred into the eyes of the Hunter. Like his voice, they to were emotionless and hypnotized. Rage started to build up in Antaeus. He would free the Hunter or else let all of his flesh be hacked from his bones.

"I will take you answer to my master." The Hunter walked away. "You have issued a challenge. We both know that." And with that the Hunter left the stage.

Balor fell to his knees. With his eyes on the ground Balor clenched his fists. "Why show me these things?" Procyon did not understand.

"It is your heritage." Procyon placed a hand on Balor's shoulder. "It is something you simply must learn about." Procyon had plans for Balor. Perhaps once he knew more about Antaeus, Balor would be influenced to become just like him. A hero, the founder of a city, a warlord, all the things Procyon had tried to be.


	8. Chapter 8

**Welcome back, gang. I really want to try and separate Balor and Kit so I'll start here. Enjoy.**

**Crinan and Gruadh**

The curse had been lifted. By Finlach's death the curse that had been cast on the twins had been lifted. So Gilcomgan both mourned and celebrated.

Antaeus sat far from Gilcomgan and the others. He sat deep in thought. What was he to do? How would he get into Harapa? There was wall around Harapa it would be impossible to break through without the aid of siege weapons. There had to be a way into the city.

"Antaeus!" Antaeus turned his head. Wendigo was standing before him with several others of the various races of Third Earth. There were a few that were the same race as the Hunter of Balor's time.

"Who are these?" Antaeus looked at all of the newcomers. "What brings them here?"

"We have come to aid you!" A Nomis stepped forward. "Harapa is a danger to all of us and it would be the highest honor to fight alongside one such a you." Antaeus stroked his chin in thought.

"Do you have a name?" The Nomis nodded in answer.

"Aye, mighty Antaeus."

"What is your name?"

"Senoj." Antaeus extended a hand. Senoj grasped the hand and shook it.

"Well, then Senoj, welcome to our campaign to crack this shell." Antaeus sighed. "But without siege weapons we cannot crack it."

"There is another way, my friend!" Antaeus raised an eyebrow in interest. "One of my scouts has found a way in."

"A way in?" Antaeus looked out at the walls of Harapa. "How?" He continued to look intently. "Where?"

"In the west side we can go in through the sewers!"

"The sewers?"

"Aye, mighty Antaeus." Senoj nodded. "My scout has discovered that beneath the city are ancient crypts, catacombs, dungeons, sewers from which we shall enter the city and even caverns." Senoj pointed at the west side of the city. "We must beware however. My scout reported that within that evil underworld that is so dark and filled with the stench of bodies dwells the brood of Spidera and other subterranean monstrosities. Strange oozes occupy nearly that underworld, it could slow us down and I've been told of how dreary of cold it is down there."

"We aren't going on a morning stroll, Senoj." Laughed Antaeus. "We must brave the perils of the underworld if we are to get into the city."

"Shall we go now?" Antaeus nodded at Senoj's question.

"Yes, the march through the dark begins now!"

Balor turned to look at Procyon. "You couldn't have skipped over this?" Procyon laughed and shook his head. "Why not?"

"Because you'll need to know this when you visit Harapa."

"It's ruins?"

"Not its ruins." Procyon shook his head. "A city has to be destroyed for there to be ruins."

Kit and Snarf followed Gruadh. Kit wished she could walk next to Gruadh but the komrev walked so quickly that it was impossible to walk next to her.

Kit worried about Balor. Procyon taking his soul just to teach him something seemed so cruel. It was against Balor's will that he was learning something. A person should learn but not like that.

Kit's thoughts were interrupted as a sound came to her ears. Snarf and Gruadh heard it too. Something was crashing through the under brush. Soon enough Crinan appeared. Growling with vicious intent, Crinan walked towards Gruadh and grabbed the unconscious Balor from her.

Crinan would have killed Balor if he had not become unsure if he should kill the evabon child. He was limp as if dead but was breathing as if alive. Tenderly, Crinan placed Balor beneath a tree as if he would do the same to his own offspring if he had any.

Crinan starred for a bit at Balor. What was wrong with this child? Crinan didn't know.

Gruadh picked up Balor and continued to walk along with Kit and Snarf following. Kit however felt something. She turned around and found it impossible with Crinan's large hand around her tail.

Crinan stood up and lifted Kit in one arm. Kis gave a painful cry, because at first Crinan had lifted her by the tail before holding her the same way Panthro had held both her and Kat, alerting Gruadh to what was going on.

Gruadh growled at Crinan angrily. Ignoring the female's growls, Crinan took to the trees! Hoping that he'd get what he wanted.


	9. Chapter 9

**Welcome back, gang. Since I'm working on two ThunderCats stories and a Detentionaire story, resulting in three at the same time there could be a decrease in quality so forgive me if there is. Enjoy. **

**The Theft of the Hammer of Sotark**

As Balor watched the stage he couldn't help but feel like something was going that he didn't know about.

The stage had begun to change in appearance. It changed from marble to obsidian then everything went dark. Procyon was reminding him of the point that Antaeus and everyone else being underground at this point.

From the stage emerged a golden hammer and it was big. Balor knew instantly that this was Sotark's hammer. Soon enough Antaeus, Senoj and their warriors walked onto the stage.

"Sotark's hammer!" Senoj's gasped in shock at the size of the hammer. Antaeus nodded.

"Indeed." Antaeus stroked his chin as he looked at the hammer. "We better take it somewhere else." Senoj starred at the hammer.

"Where?" He shook his head. There was a bewildered look in his eyes. "How?" Senoj looked at the hammer completely unsure of how something that big could even be moved. "Why?"

"Somewhere that's not here, everyone but you and me will lift it and carry it out of here and should the time ever come that Sotark escapes from his prison it's better that it's not at the place where the insane worship him." Everyone that wasn't Antaeus or Senoj walked towards the hammer and lifted it. There was enough of them so it wasn't as difficult as one would think. Eventually, the hammer was off the stage and this only caused Balor to wonder, where was the hammer now? And that seemed to quick.

"Yes, I know that was to quick but the actual discussion about the hammer lasted a half hour and as I said before if I were to show the entire history of Antaeus that would take ten hours and you need to be back before sunrise." Balor turned his head and looked at Procyon. He had no idea how long it took to get to this point now. Had it been an hour? Two hours? Sunrise could almost be upon him!

Crinan starred at the moons. Was this night ever going to end? He then looked down at the Thunderan girl in his grasp. He had her he could kill her now! All Thunderans were his enemies so why didn't he just kill her? It was the Evabon boy he wanted. Not to kill, but to revive. He breathed but was like one who was dead. What was wrong with him? Not just the Evabon boy but Crinan himself as well. Normally he would have killed any Evabon or Thunderan on sight but now he was hesitant to do so.

As Crinan turned his head back up at the moons when he heard another coming through the trees. Crinan turned his head as Gruadh appeared. The young Evabon was with her, still unconscious or in a state of living death whichever it was.

Crinan grunted and pointed at Balor. Gruadh nodded and placed Crinan on a large tree limb. Crinan then handed Gruadh WilyKit.

Kit starred in horror as Crinan grabbed Balor's unconscious form. While Gruadh leapt away through the treetops with Kit in her arms, Kit saw Crinan hold up Balor and drop him. The last thing Kit saw was Balor went hurtling down to the ground below. Tears started to flow from her eyes as she knew that falling from this height would have killed him.

When Gruadh was out of sight, Crinan looked down and just as he expected Balor was being held off the ground by vines. He was alive Crinan could see Balor breathing. No bones were broken, no bruises he wasn't bleeding. Balor was fine.

Crinan climbed down and grabbed Balor. Placing Balor over his shoulder, Crinan climbed to the ground and once he had reached the ground he removed Balor from his shoulder and looked at him. Grey skin? He had never seen an Evabon with grey skin before. Was he truly an Evabon? Or was his some kind of spirit? He had to be a spirit. Crinan could not kill a spirit.

He did not know what to do. Crinan simply started walking with Balor still in his arms.

He did not know where he was going, he just felt himself being pulled somewhere. Ultimately, Crinan came to a tomb not in a forest but out in the moorland. In the moorland were many bogs. If one were to fall into a bog it would be certain death. The tomb was the only building on the moorland, built on a patch of land surrounded entirely by bog with only one way across by way of steppingstones.

Upon getting across to the tomb, Crinan placed Balor at its entrance. Crinan looked at Balor for a few seconds, wondering if this was right, but finally he left the moorland and returned to the mushroom cave. He then forgot about Balor upon his return. All Evabon were the same to him, no matter their gender or skin color, and thus he wouldn't remember one particular child.


	10. Chapter 10

**Welcome back, gang. Just needed some sort of mythological beast so I chose the Knucker. Enjoy.**

**The Brown Knucker**

Antaeus and Senoj continued through the underworld. Finally, Antaeus stopped. Senoj turned back to look at him. Lacking eyebrows, Senoj simply raised a brow ridge.

"Something wrong?" Antaeus shook his head.

"I'm just tired, let me rest a bit." Antaeus sat down on a rock. He was breathing loudly. "Age is catching up to me, forty-one and immediately my legs start to get heavy." He laughed. "I'm not as fast as I once was, my strength is fine but my speed is starting to become… not so fast I guess." Antaeus then placed his hands on his knees. He then looked up at Senoj. "Senoj, you're people were split in two at a time. Your spiritual side longed for harmony and your warrior side gloried in battle. How did you ever bring them together?"

"You've never been to a Nomis settlement have you?" Antaeus shook his head. "Village, town, city they're all the same. If I'm not cast out for this, I'll show you the settlement that I come from." Antaeus raised an eyebrow in question.

"Why would you be cast out?"

"We don't approve of lethal force." Nomis looked down at his feet. "But this has to be done. I'm convinced I'm doing the right thing." Antaeus nodded.

"Harapa is a danger to everyone, you are doing the right thing." Antaeus stood up. He noticed something. Senoj turned around and noticed the same thing. A creature appeared, coming out of a tunnel. It looked like a snake with legs and wings, brown in color. It was a Knucker! The Knucker looked at the Evabon and the Nomis then continued on its merry way as if it hadn't seen anything. Antaeus followed it, so did Senoj. They had a hunch but if they were to follow the Knucker, they'd find a way to the surface of the city.

Balor's unconscious form hadn't moved from where Crinan left him. While he learned in limbo there was nothing he could do in the physical world. His body was stuck there in front of the tomb.

It was that way that a brown knucker came across him. Coming out of the tomb, the knucker looked puzzled. Why was there an unconscious evabon here? The knucker extended its serpentine neck down and its head was right next to Balor's. Balor's head could fit in the creature's mouth! It did not bother the knucker it would have bothered someone else but not the knucker. The knucker stuck its snake-like tongue into Balor's ear and to its surprise Balor did not awaken. He was breathing so why did he not awaken?

The Knucker had been followed by an evabon, long ago when it was young and tender. Now that it was old and strong, a young evabon was outside of the tomb it called home. Why? Was this a trap? Was the Knucker being hunted? The Knucker did not know.

The Knucker grabbed Balor's shoulder with its mouth and dragged the young evabon inside the tomb. Ally or enemy, a child needed shelter.


	11. Chapter 11

**Welcome back, gang. No Balor in the chapter. Enjoy.**

**The Fall of Harapa **

Antaeus and Senoj followed the Knucker. It didn't mind they were following it. It just continued on its path. Finally, they came to a circle of light. Antaeus and Senoj looked up and saw a hole in the ceiling. A way out of that blasted underworld! Both approached it when a body was tossed down. Antaeus and Senoj backed away. It was the body of a woman.

The Knucker hadn't noticed, it just continued on its merry way. Antaeus and Senoj knew where they were. They were beneath the temple where sacrifices were performed. It was that Arrs waited for them. Antaeus and Senoj climbed through the hole and before them in a throne sat a person of unidentifiable race. Next to the throne stood the Hunter.

"Arrs, I presume?" The person nodded at Antaeus' question. "What are you?"

"A person." Arrs stood up. While his race was unidentifiable his clothing was. This was not the garb of any religious person but of a butcher! "But far superior to any other."

"You think highly of yourself don't you?" Senoj's question caused Arrs to glare in anger. "Look at you! You're a butcher! All ways was, all ways will be! A butcher can't defeat anyone that's not tied down!" Arrs turned to the Hunter and pointed at Antaeus and Senoj. The Hunter didn't move. All eyes were on Arrs, the priests, the Hunter, those to be sacrificed, everyone had their eyes on him.

"You have been challenged, no one will kill them for you!" Arrs grabbed the Hunter by the neck. This was unacceptable!

"Slave, remember who is your master!"

"Aye, I am your slave but you must answer the challenge!" A grin appeared on the Hunter's face. "Besides, what you did to me only affects me as long as your alive, if you die and you will, I won't be your slave I'll be free!" Arrs grabbed the Hunter's sword from its sheath and glared at the swords owner.

"When this is done, I'm going to mingle their blood with yours." Arrs charged towards Antaeus, with sword raised. Quickly, Antaeus drew his own sword and the battle was over before it even began.

Antaeus had emerged victorious but it was not much of victory. Arrs had been a poor fighter, clumsy, weak, incompetent, easily angered. It was unsurprising that Arrs had been beaten.

The Hunter walked towards the body of his former master. Kneeling down, the Hunter picked up a specific part of the upper half of Arrs' body. "I feel nothing for him." The Hunter threw the part of Arrs' body aside. "I am free! I am no longer the Hunter, I am Bethad once more!" Bethad then walked towards both Antaeus and Senoj. "Harapa has fallen, for the time being." Antaeus raised an eyebrow.

"For the time being?" Bethad nodded.

"Without a leader, Harapa is not a threat." Bethad sighed and looked back at the priests while the women that were to be sacrificed left the temple. "There will be war in Harapa now, the priests, the warriors, the doctors, they'll all be fighting each other!"

"The doctors?" Bethad turned to look at Senoj. He nodded again.

"They spend most of their time dissecting people while they're in the process of dying, they aren't pleasant." Bethad started to walk towards the hole in the floor then he looked back at Antaeus and Senoj. "You coming? I'd rather get out of here this way before all chaos breaks loose in this blasted city!" Bethad then jumped down the hole with Antaeus and Senoj following.

The Hunter starred at 'Ruari'. There was something wrong about this Evabon! His eyes were glowing. That was unnatural! Had no one else noticed this?

"Creature!" The Hunter shouted at 'Ruari'. "Chupacabra! Monster! Shapeshifter!" 'Ruari' hit the Hunter with the back of his hand. The Hunter glared angrily. "I was a fool! The only monster amongst this race is you!" 'Ruari' waved his hand and Gard, Zuvowang and Dalv understandably took the Hunter away. He then turned to the ThunderCats.

"I'll see you all again soon." And with that 'Ruari' walked away. He walked towards the entrance to the tombs below and in the deepest phosphorous cavern beneath the surface where a large pool of water was he looked into it. The person in the reflection was not Ruari but a gold skinned evabon.

The things he had done to remain young! Three millennia and he was still what he was! A skinwalker! A shapeshifter! One of Sotark's followers from before Harapa! He had ended up becoming what he had by way of spell. He thought it would keep him young forever but was appalled that when he killed an elder of his clan that his body had become the elder's. This kept happening, every time he killed someone he took on their form. Then the day came that he killed a tolac and for sixty-four years he had been trapped as a beast, walking on all fours! He had become a growling thing! He had encountered Gard once, who believed the shapeshifter to only be a mad tolac, and Gard had successfully fought him off. Then he came upon Balor and Ruari. He had learned their names as he laid in wait, as the two talked. When he had attacked Ruari, his antagonist had scarred him! With a dagger, Ruari had slashed the shapeshifter's face three times diagonally to the right. When the deed was done and he had taken Ruari's form, the shapeshifter fled for the Valley of the Tombs.

He had theorized that Ruari and Balor were descendants of Gard. He was correct. He had also theorized that they were descendants of Antaeus, that much was just lies from one of Sotark's followers.

The Shapeshifter had planned to fool some foolish new guardian to release Sotark but the way things out were good. He had a young body again. Everything was working out perfectly for him. The Hunter had figured out he wasn't normal and he would have to die! Not by his hand of course! There was no way he'd turn into that ugly beast but the Hunter had to die nonetheless. He was a threat and the Hunter had to die, even if the Shapeshifter had to push someone to do it.


	12. Chapter 12

**Welcome back, gang. Enjoy.**

**Balor's Return**

All of the clay figures crumbled into dust. Balor's eyes widened in shock, that couldn't have been it!

"We'll stop at the halfway mark." Procyon's voice was starting to annoy Balor. Stop at the halfway mark? What was he thinking? "Besides, everything after Harapa is boring in my opinion. So I'll send you back now since it's one minute before sunrise with something for your friend."

"Wait! What?" Balor turned his head to look at Procyon just as Balor felt himself return to his body. His eyes opened and he sat up in shock. "Cutting it close aren't you? And it didn't feel that long!" Balor then looked around at his surroundings. "Wait, where am I?" He then looked at the Knucker. "And who and what are you?" The Knucker turned his head sideways curiously, once again putting his snake-like tongue into Balor's ear. Balor shivered in shock. "So that's what that feeling was." He stood up and looked over at an open coffin finally noticing something in his right hand: Kit's flupe. The skeleton was that of an evabon and for some reason Balor felt like he new the evabon. Why was it so familiar? He wasn't sure. Balor walked out of where he was, a tomb, and found himself out in the middle of moorland. The Knucker followed Balor without any reason. "Where am I?" He placed a hand on the Knucker's neck. "You bring me out here? Where's Snarf? Where's that komrev? Where's… where's Kit?" Balor took a step and ended falling into the mire. The Knucker quickly shot out his serpentine neck and pulled Balor out of the mire. The Knucker placed Balor on a rock and starred at the creature that saved him. "This is quite the place you chose to live!" He wiped some of the stuff from the mire off of himself and threw it back into the mire. "Well, I can find my way back to the Valley of the Tombs but I just can't find a way across this bog." Balor kneeled and looked down into the bog. "How do you get across this? I felt like I was being pulled down by something." The Knucker grabbed Balor by the shoulder with his mouth and lifted Balor into the air. The Knucker then stepped into the bog and started to swim through it. The Knucker then placed Balor on his back. Balor looked down into the bog. What was in there? When the Knucker reached the edge of the moorland Balor leapt from its back. Turning to face the Knucker, Balor smiled at the serpent with legs and wings. "Thanks! You coming along?" The Knucker just turned away, going back to the tomb. "Guess not." Balor continued in the direction he knew the Valley of the Tombs was in.

There finally came a time when Balor could not walk any farther. As he leaned back beneath a dead tree, Procyon appeared. "I should have expected that you would have been somewhere different from where you started." He let out a sigh and pointed a finger at Balor. "Just this once." Within a flash Balor was at the Valley of the Tombs.

The Valley felt like it was doing flip-flops and spinning. No wonder Procyon had said "just this once."

When Kat walked up to Balor, he didn't even notice how Balor was feeling. He had just been eating candy fruit and offered Balor a second candy fruit. Balor just shook his head and leaned on the statue of Antaeus. "Hey, you feeling okay?" Balor shook his head.

"Not really, no!" When would the Valley stop doing flip-flops and spinning?

"You must have been hit hard!"

"That's an understatement!" Balor looked down. The flip-flops had stopped but the spinning had not stopped and it didn't seem like it was going to stop anytime soon. "Have you seen, Kit?" Kat shook his head.

"No, why?" Balor looked at Kat. The spinning still wasn't stopping. "She go out for a walk?"Balor finally collapsed… on top of a sleeping tolac. The tolac was black with red eyes it woke up and starred at Balor. Balor nodded and the tolac just went back to sleep. Balor then looked up at Kat.

"You could say that."

"Well, you've got her flupe!" Kat pointed at the tolac. "Just have Barghest sniff it and he'll lead us right to her." Balor starred at the sleeping Barghest.

"You sure Asaji will be alright with us borrowing her late father's tolac?" Kat shook his head.

"Of course, who's gonna miss him?"

"That is true." There was a sarcastic tone to Balor's voice. Kat didn't notice it and just took the flupe from Balor's hand and woke up Barghest. "Does no one listen when I use sarcasm?" Barghest stood up and started to sniff at the ground and walked away. Kat followed and so did Balor shortly. They were off to find Kit and Snarf!


	13. Chapter 13

**Welcome back, gang. Originally, Kit was suppose to appearat the middle of this chapter but there are so little times that have Balor and Kat together that I put more focus on Balor and Kat's interactions for this chapter. Enjoy.**

**To Find a Girl and a Snarf **

Balor and Kat continued in search of Kit and Snarf. Barghest had started to walk faster as he sniffed the ground to the point that Balor and Kat had to run just to keep up with him.

"By the way, your brother is in the Valley of the Tombs, he protects on of the tombs that is underground." Balor stopped while Kat continued to follow Barghest. What did he just say? His brother was one of the guardians of the tombs. That couldn't be right!

"But my brother is dead!"

"Just because you didn't see a body doesn't mean he's dead." Balor ran to catch up with Kat and Barghest. What was Kat babbling about?

"Didn't see a body nothing!" Balor jumped, grabbed a tree branch and swung on it. He let go and ended up a few feet ahead of Kat. "I saw a body with the head separated from it now what was that about Ruari not being dead?" Balor then jumped ahead and landed on Barghest's back. Barghest didn't even notice the boy standing on his back he just kept walking and sniffing the ground. "No one can survive a blow like that, just like no one can survive being carried away by a hurricane." Kat nodded in understanding. Kit must have told Balor about what had happened to their father and he had a good point. No one could have survived either of those things.

"I guess you're right but then how do you explain Ruari being the Valley of the Tombs when he should be dead?" Balor was stumped. Kat's question was as good as Balor's reason of why Ruari couldn't be in the valley. Balor's eyes widened in realization and horror as the answer came to him.

"The tolac!" Kat raised an eyebrow in question.

"Barghest?"

"No!"

"Calaban?"

"No!"

"Andvari?"

"No, he wasn't born yet and will you just stop talking!" Kat opened his mouth to speak but Balor spoke quickly. "No! No talking from you!" Kat closed his mouth with an unhappy look on his face. "A tolac killed Ruari and when I came back with help and saw Ruari's body the tolac's tracks ended up turning into tracks like one of my people's!"

"That's crazy!" Balor looked down at Kat. Crazy? How was it crazy?

"Oh yeah?" Kat laughed.

"Great come back!" The sarcasm in Kat's voice was annoying. Balor just shook his head. "A were-tolac, isn't that a childish idea?"

"Well, we are kids but that's not what I was suggesting."

"An evil twin?" Balor shrugged.

"I don't know, Kat, that's kinda what I'm thinking of but not really." Barghest then stopped in his tracks and started to growl. Balor kneeled down on the tolac's back and patted him on the head. "What's the matter, boy? Hear something?" Kat looked around and he saw a pair of red eyes starring at him from behind a tree. Mumm-Ra? No, it looked nothing like that otherworldly demon. The eyes might have been red but whatever was behind the tree looked… just different! "Or maybe you smell something? Well, don't get distracted. We still have to find Kit and Snarf." Balor then looked around. For some reason he felt like they were in danger. He didn't know why. He didn't wonder why, he just looked around. Finally, Balor saw the eyes that Kat saw. "A komrev!" Kat turned his head to look at Balor.

"You sure?" Balor nodded.

"I've only seen one komrev close up but I can tell that's what it is." Kat starred at Balor in annoyance.

"Are you ever wrong?" Balor smiled.

"I thought I was once but turned out I was wrong." The sound of palm hitting forehead was heard. Balor turned his head and looked at Kat. He was the author of that sound. "What too corny?" Kat nodded. Balor scratched his cheek as he looked at the red eyes starring at them. It didn't sound that corny! "Let's just keep searching." Balor got off Barghest's back and started to push the tolac. Barghest wouldn't budge. He just kept growling with his eyes fixed on the komrev. Barghest started to walk towards the komrev behind the tree and instantly Balor placed his arms around Barghest's neck to try and hold him back. "Barghest, heel!" The tolac didn't stop. "Sit! Stop!" Barghest still didn't stop. He broke out of Balor's hold and ran at the komrev with teeth bared.

Out from behind the tree stepped Crinan. He lashed out at Barghest with his arms and the tolac went flying until it hit a tree. One would have thought that Crinan would have remembered Balor but one evabon looked like the other to him. Crinan wasn't that smart and to him, a komrev who hated evabon with a vengeance, all evabon were the same: just a race out to get him.

As soon as Crinan laid eyes on Balor however, something in his mind caused him to remember him… sort of. A grey skinned evabon? Had he seen a grey skinned evabon before? This evabon looked familiar but there was something unfamiliar about him.

It didn't matter.

Crinan charged at the two boys who then jumped out of the way. Instantly, Crinan tried to go for Balor only to feel Kat's flank around his neck. Annoyed by this, Crinan grabbed the flank out of Kat's hand and started to chase after the kitten.

As Crinan pursued Kat, the flank still around his neck, still flailing in the air got caught on a tree limb. Crinan ignored this. He simply kept trying to get at Kat, ignoring the flank tightening around his throat. Finally, from lack of blood flow to the head Crinan fell unconscious.

When Kat removed the flank from around, he looked over and saw Balor trying to wake up Barghest. He walked over to Balor and hit him on the head. "What's the matter with you?" Balor rubbed his head, wondering what he did. "Gard wouldn't have left me!"

"I'm not him!" Balor clenched his fists and yelled at Kat. That was unexpected. Balor never would have been like this before Thomeheb had died. "I'm never going to be him, I'm me! No one else! Why can't you people see that?"

"What are you talking about?" Balor shook his head.

"Nothing, it doesn't matter." Barghest woke up and lazily licked Kat's hand.

"Who did you mean by 'you people?'" Balor sighed. Kat's badgering was annoying.

"I just said it doesn't matter." Balor held out Kit's flupe. Barghest sniffed the instrument and continued on the trail. "Come on, we've got to find Kit and Snarf!" Kat starred in surprise.

"Snarf, too!" Balor shrugged and followed Barghest. "Why didn't you tell me Snarf was gone too?"

"Because we don't have to worry about Snarf!" Balor jumped onto Barghest's back and started to keep an eye out. "It's Snarf! He can take care of himself." Balor laughed to himself. "Maybe he's looking for that El Dara place you and your sister have told me about!" Kat started running to catch up with Barghest. The tolac had returned to the pace he had been going at before Crinan showed up.

"You really think so?" Balor shrugged. "Why not?"

"I'm not even sure if it's real or not and even if it is for all I know it could be in ruins!" Kat starred angrily at Balor. "I'm just saying what if it is in ruins? What then? Look for buried treasure in the ruins?" The angry look on Kats face vanished and he looked thoughtful.

"Buried treasure?" Balor shook his head. Kat clearly liked the sound of that. "Sounds fun!" Balor nodded, not just at Kat's comment but at what he had just been thinking, too.

Barghest then started barking. Balor and Kat both looked at the tolac wondering what was coming now. He started running, causing Balor to fall off of Barghest's back and on top of Kat.

"Must have smelled a Snarf up a tree!" Balor stood up and looked down at Kat. "You okay?" Kat gave a dazed nod. He stood up and both of the boys ran after Barghest.

When they found Barghest, he was barking like a pup and being shooed away by a female komrev: Gruadh.

With Gruadh were Kit and Snarf. When Kit saw Balor, alive, she smiled.

Barghest finally settled down and sat beneath a tree, leaving the kids free to talk without his barking. They talked on their way back to the Valley of the Tombs with Snarf and Gruadh following them. By the time they were nearly out of sight, Barghest ran to catch up with them. He moved quickly but his speed caused him to tire out quickly too.

When they came across the spot where Crinan had fallen unconscious, they found him gone. "Where had he gone" was what Balor and Kat wondered. It hadn't been that long since they had been down this path, Crinan should have still been unconscious but he wasn't so where was he?


	14. Chapter 14

**Welcome back, gang. The song that Zuvowang sings is taken from Twelfth Night, just a bit more of me bringing my love of Shakespeare into my fan fictions. Enjoy. **

**Melancholy and Madness**

Zuvowang held up a lyre. In his youth he had been quite the musician and the singer! Perhaps he still had the gift. He started to play the lyre. He hadn't lost his touch. Now to test the other!

When that I was and a little tiny boy,

With hey, ho, the wind and the rain,

A foolish thing was but a toy,

For the rain it raineth every day.

A great while ago the world begun,

With hey, ho, the wind and the rain.

But that's all one, our song is done,

And we'll strive to please you every day.

Zuvowang grinned. He still had it! While there was clapping from those around him, melancholy Dalv just groaned.

"Something wrong, chum?" Dalv turned his head to look at Zuvowang.

"Why did you have to sing a happy song like that?" Zuvowang laughed heartily. Dalv raised an eyebrow.

"I sang a melancholy song for you, my friend!" Zuvowang started to fiddle with the lyre. "Perhaps I should sing a happy song… 'A Lover and his Lass' perhaps?" Dalv placed his hands over his ears and shook his head. There was laughing from all present. Zuvowang put down the lyre and walked over to Dalv. "Come now, Dalv, I was only joking! With all your melancholiness-"

"Melancholiness, isn't a word!"

"-I wonder if you've ever been married! I've been married three times and I've ended up out living all three of them."

"I'm a widower!"

"Well, to be in mourning for so long for ones as long-lived as we is madness, be happy!" Dalv shook his head and walked off. Zuvowang shrugged and walked over to the lyre. He picked it up and smiled. "Now then, any recommendations?"

"How about the person you think is my brother isn't my brother because my brother is dead." Everyone turned as Balor, Kat, Kit and Snarf walked up to the group. Barghest had gone back to sleeping next to the statue of Antaeus and Gruadh had left the group.

"I don't know that one but I'll give it a shot!" Zuvowang laughed at his own joke. No one else did. "I must have been vengeful for too long, I've lost my sense of humor!" Gard didn't say anything. He just starred at Balor with a skeptical look on his face. Lion-O, however, wasn't so skeptical.

"The Hunter seemed shocked when he saw Ruari, why don't you ask him?" Lion's comment caused the skeptical look on Gard's face to vanish.

"He will not." Only a few people looked at him. "No relative of mine will go to that monster for information and besides, Baor, you're confused! That is Ruari!" Gard looked aside and muttered to himself. "It has to be." He couldn't lose another family member, he couldn't. He couldn't lose a family member if he hadn't even found one in the first place. That was twisted. Gard finally noticed Balor running off. Gard stood up and walked over to Lion-O. "Did you just tell him where the Hunter is imprisoned?" Lion-O nodded. "Why?"

"Just trust him." Gard glared at Lion-O. He shook his head and walked in the direction Balor had gone.


	15. Chapter 15

**Welcome back, gang. When I was coming up with Balor's brother I had two names picked out: Ruari and Ketill. When I introduced the Shapeshifter I used both names and I didn't realize it so I decided to get around it in this chapter by revealing that Balor's brother's name was actually Ruari Ketill. Also, I wanted to make the shapeshifter's true personality as creepy as possible. Enjoy.**

**Good and Evil**

Balor walked towards the cell that held the Hunter in it. The Hunter, no longer dressed in his armor, languished in the cell. He wasn't even looking at the bars the Hunter was looking at the wall.

"Have you come to gawk at me?" Balor didn't say anything. "You're survival of the blow from my hammer is unexpected but yet here you are." Balor still didn't say anything. "Why are you here?"

"There is one other say is my big brother." Balor closed his eyes. "Except I know that my brother is dead." Balor opened his eyes and leaned towards the bars. "You know something don't you?" The Hunter turned his head to look at Balor. Slumped against a wall, he looked almost sad to have been the one who had been hunted and caught.

"He resembles both you and Gard." Balor nodded. He already knew that. "He has scars across his face." Ruari-Ketill didn't have scars across his face, not even before he was cremated. "Also to note is his glowing eyes." That was new, too. "Your mysteriously living brother is really a shapeshifter. When a shapeshifter kills a person they take on the form of that person until they kill another person. They can only change form of their own free will during the cycle of the full moon and that starts tonight!"

"Well, looks like the snarf's out of the bag!" Balor turned and before stood the shapeshifter in Ruari's form. "The Hunter and the little brother of my previous victim discussing me!" The shapeshifter laughed. "I wonder if Sotark remembers me, I wonder what will happen if I kill the both of you at the same time, I wonder a lot of things but that second question really gets me wondering." The shapeshifter took a step forward with Balor glaring at him. "Would I end up as a freakish combination of evabon and nomis?" The shapeshifter chuckled. "If only I could remember my name! Ever since all of this changing of forms began I've remembered less and less of what my name was. Now, I don't remember it at all and I'm happy with that. And now I can become anything! I've killed so many things that I can just escape into a crowd of any type of sentient being if need be! And the beasts I've killed! I've killed dangerous beasts so many times that I can choose to become anything, person or animal, you'll never know if it's me or not and just to let you know Balor, I didn't give your brother any time to scream before I ripped his head off!" The shapeshifter began to laugh. "Oh, it's not every century I get to kill siblings! It's just so enjoyable but not as enjoyable as killing an entire family! I think I'll Gard after I've killed you! Yes!" The shapeshifter drew a dagger and charged at Balor. Balor jumped through the bars causing a confused look on the Hunter's face.

"You can fit through those bars?" Balor looked at the bars. He then looked up at the ceiling, at the walls then he looked at the floor. He nodded.

"Of course! You can't because you have arms like tree trunks!" Balor then looked at the shapeshifter. "And since my brother Ruari-Ketill had an oversized head and right arm this impostor can't either." The shapeshifter switched the dagger to his left hand and extended his arm through the bars and stabbed Balor in the right shoulder. The shapeshifter pulled his arm back and starred at the blood on the blade while Balor clutched his shoulder. The shapeshifter sniffed the blood and then licked the blood.

"Mm! Delicious!" Balor starred with shocked eyes. He had seen a lot of things in his short life but this guy was pretty creepy. "You know this is my first time tasting the blood of my own race! I can't believe I went for so long without this delicacy! I wonder what nomis blood tastes like."

"Come on in and try, you abomination!" The shapeshifter rolled his eyes at the Hunter's challenge.

"Abomination. As if I've never heard that one before." The Shapeshifter started to walk away. "I've got a better idea right now." The shapeshifter didn't get very far. In front of him with sword drawn was Gard. A look of dread appeared on the shapeshifter's face. On Gard's face was a less than happy expression. "How much did you here?"

"All of it!" Gard's grip tightened on his claymore. The shapeshifter swallowed, his eyes on the claymore.

"Da-" The shapeshifter's curse was cut short. Gard had acted quickly and correctly. The shapeshifter was dead.

Gard walked towards the cell and looked into it. Balor was clutching his shoulder and the Hunter seemed changed some how from his short time in the cell. Gard looked down at Balor. He then looked at the Hunter. "You both knew." The Hunter looked down in shame.

"You weren't the monsters." He then closed his eyes. "He was!"

"Good and evil is everywhere but to find the good you must be willing to look for it." Gard turned his head to look at Balor. With his blind eye there was a lot of head turning from him. "Go, tell everyone what has happened and get that shoulder of yours looked at!" Balor squeezed through the bars, easy for him, and left the cave the cell was in. Gard starred at the Hunter with a sympathetic look in his good eye. "This must be a lot for you to take in." The Hunter nodded.

"There is much I must atone for." The Hunter opened his eyes. The sad look in his eyes was something that was new to him. He had not felt sadness. "I've killed many, not just evabon. My people live for harmony and the glory of battle! After what I've done, it is better that I commit suicide to seek redemption in the next life."

"No!" Gard placed a hand on the bars. "The nomis do not take lives, not even their own. This isn't the real you talking, this is the Hunter persona talking! Think about this! There is good and evil in all of us! If you take your own life then that is just giving in to the evil, ugly side of your life that has ruled you!" The Hunter breathed.

"Leave me be." Gard raised an eyebrow. What was he talking about? "I have much to think about, whether I should take my life or not, what I've done… so much." Gard left the cave. He understood what the Hunter was talking about. There had been a time when he himself had been perceived as a monster and for a time he believed he was one. The friendship of the ThunderCats had helped him through that. He only wondered if the Hunter would be able to make the change he had made. The change into something better, something good.


	16. Chapter 16

**Welcome back, gang. Here we are, the final chapter of this story. Enjoy. **

**Parting Ways**

Balor sat next to Barghest. As he listened to everyone say goodbyes this only left him to wonder. Where would he be headed? Home? Wherever Gard, Zuvowang and Dalv were going? Where would he be?

"I suggest you go to Harapa." The moment Asaji said Harapa, Balor stood up and poked his head out from behind the statue of Antaeus. "The entire city worships Sotark, once he finds his hammer he'll go there." Asaji handed Gard a map. The moment Dalv saw it he groaned.

"Great, it's dated!" Dalv grabbed it and starred long and hard at where Harapa was. "For all we know the city could be smaller, bigger or not even there any more!" There was a silence from the ThunderCats.

"Not even there any more?" Cheetara couldn't believe what she had just heard. "How can a city not be there?"

"There are cities with legs, cities tied to the backs of sea serpents, cities that fly." Zuvowang chuckled. "You all are going to a city that flies aren't you?" Lion-O nodded.

"Once we get something that can fly." Gard then took the map from Dalv.

"Then what have you all to be skeptical of?" Gard had a point. What did the ThunderCats have to be skeptical about when they were heading to a flying city? A city on the backs of sea serpents or a city with legs probably was something for them to be skeptical about since they had never heard of either of those kinds of city before but they did exist. "Now I can only hope that Sotark hasn't found his hammer yet!"

"If it's what the Sword of Plundarr is for Mumm-Ra then he might have already found it." Lion-O's comment made Gard shudder and that wasn't something he usually did.

"Thanks for the thought, Lion-O!" The sarcasm in Gard's voice was obvious. One might have not noticed that sarcasm in Balor's voice but there was no way they couldn't notice the sarcasm in Gard's. "From what I know about Mumm-Ra and what you've told me, it would seem the addition of Sotark has only made things worse." Gard rolled up the map and took a look at all of the ThunderCats. "With his hammer, Sotark will be twice as powerful as he already is. These are dark times, my friends. Mumm-Ra, Sotark, two evils and I have no idea which of the two is the lesser. There is what Mumm-Ra did to my brother and then there is what Sotark did to all of Third Earth's inhabitants." Shocked looks appeared on the faces of the ThunderCats. To Dalv however, he didn't believe the shock of Pumyra's face was real.

"What?" Tygra didn't know what he had just heard. What had Mumm-Ra done to Procyon. "What happened?"

"He tortured Procyon until his bloodlust was released and in the long run that resulted in my brother's death." Gard placed his hands on Zuvowang and Dalv's shoulders. "Now, until we meet again, this is goodbye." Gard turned his head and looked over at Balor. "And you're staying here!" Balor looked down. If Gard's reasoning was that it was safe in the Valley of the Tombs, Balor wasn't so sure about that. Gard, Zuvowang and Dalv left the valley. Balor starred at the three leaving. Would he see Gard again? Gard had lived a long time he wouldn't die so easily. Balor walked up to the ThunderCats. He opened his mouth to talk but only ended up stuttering.

"Take care of that shoulder." Lion-O smiled at Balor. His shoulder had been bandaged and it still hurt. Balor nodded at Lion-O's suggestion. "We'll see you and Gard again some other time." Balor nodded again. "Don't feel like talking?" Balor shook his head.

"That whole bit with the shapeshifter has you scared doesn't it?" Balor nodded at Tygra's question. "I have to admit that was a cruel twist of fate." Balor nodded.

"Are you going to be alright?" Balor shrugged at Cheetara's question. He wasn't sure of how he was going to be. His brother's form being used to try and kill him was nightmarish. Panthro groaned.

"Come on, let's get going." The ThunderCats all looked at Panthro. "He'll be fine!" Everyone walked away to the ThunderTank, everyone but Panthro. Panthro looked down at Balor. "You will be fine, right?" Balor shrugged. Panthro gave an annoyed sigh. "You're quite the conversationalist right now." Panthro walked over to the ThunderTank. Balor followed him a bit and stopped when Panthro entered the ThunderTank. The tank drove away and Balor's friends were gone, his family was gone. Gard, the ThunderCats, everyone that Balor knew was on an adventure.

Balor walked back to the statue of Antaeus and sat next to Barghest. Barghest looked up at the boy, panting with a happy look in his eyes. Balor just gave the tolac a pat on the head. Balor had seen Rotherham earlier, confused about everything. The shapeshifter, being the new leader, everything was happening so fast.

"Something wrong, Balor?" Balor looked up and saw Amaterasu. He hadn't even heard her coming. Actually, she was in a coma so she shouldn't have been standing before him. Was she using astral projection? Was he a magnet for spirits? "I brought you someone." She held out her hands and in them was a confused Andvari, not really knowing where he was. Balor held out his hands and took Andvari. The tolac pup barked at Barghest who just sniffed the excited pup. "You don't seem to talkative right now." That was an understatement. "It is best you stay here where it's safe." Balor looked down and patted Andvari on the back. "But what do you have to fear? You've already had a near death experience." Balor swallowed. "Go find, Gard, don't find Gard, do what you want."

Balor looked up to speak but to his surprise Amaterasu was no longer there. Balor turned his head to look at both Barghest and Andvari. He patted them both on the head. Both were looking at him with big eyes. Finally, he sighed and stood up.

"I'm going home, I don't care if people keep trying to force me to be like Gard!" The two tolacs kept starring at Balor. "It's better to be there than be starred at by you!" Barghest just started panting, while Andvari perked his ears up. "Okay, it's not but I got to get out of here, it's boring here!" Balor left the valley. Barghest and Andvari followed. Balor turned to look at Barghest. "I don't care why you're following, just don't." Barghest just kept following.

When Balor returned to his village, his eyes widened in horror. It was gone his home was gone. It was in ruins, there were bodies everywhere this was quite the return home.

Everyone he knew was gone. That wasn't astral projection he had seen of Amaterasu she was dead. Even in death she was the same as she had been in life.

He started to feel weak in the legs. Balor fell back and looked around. His eyes were wide with horror. Who could have done this? What could have done this? Soatrk? That Mumm-Ra he had heard so much about?

Andvari touched Balor's arm with his paw. Balor looked at the pup and placed a hand on his head. Their home was gone. Everyone they knew was gone. Everything was happening too fast! What were they going to do? Where were they going to go? Back to the Valley of the Tombs? It was the only place and Gard had told him to stay there.

Balor looked at Andvari. He picked up the pup and held him close to him.

"We're all that's left of this place, Andvari! You, me, Gard… we're all that's left."

**The End**

**I'll be taking a break with some shorter stories before I continue with Gard, Zuvowang and Dalv's mission. Until then read and review.**


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